Flitch sawing question

[Jim_Rogers]

Maybe I didn't enter the search name correctly, but I was trying to find the definition of "Flitch sawing" and or any other definitions of types of sawing.

I had a call this morning and the lady asked me what was "flitch sawing". I told her my definition of flitch sawing to be sawing through and through without edging, in preparation for putting the log back together, when stacking, is "flitch sawing".

Is this a correct definition? Where on the forum is the dictionary or definitions section? I can't seem to find it.

Is flat sawing like flitch sawing but taking off the edges?

I know what quarter sawing is, but I should have a printed set of definitions when someone asks me to define it.

Thanks

Jim Rogers

[beenthere]

Jim
Usually referred to as "live sawing"

A very usual European practice of sawing logs and stickering the pieces to keep the log together. Preferred, it is said, to allow the woodcrafter to use the same log in a piece of furniture for matching color, grain, and species.

[Dave Shepard]

Often referred to as a bole cut.

[Jim_Rogers]

Thanks for your replies.

[Texas Ranger]

An old time carpenter (my grand dad) referred to early (1880's) veneers as flitch cut, thicker than modern veneers,
I am doing a piece of renovation furniture now that has what he, and I, would call flitch cut veneer, about 1/8 inch thick walnut book matched burl.  Rotary mills have reduced that to a few thousandths of an inch now adays.

[drobertson]

Jim
Usually referred to as "live sawing"

A very usual European practice of sawing logs and stickering the pieces to keep the log together. Preferred, it is said, to allow the woodcrafter to use the same log in a piece of furniture for matching color, grain, and species.

this is it, in a nut shell, mainly for matching grain and patterns,  david

[Jim_Rogers]

Ok, so my definition of flitch sawing was correct.

Where here on the forum is access to the dictionary of sawing terms? do we have one?

How do I access the knowledge base?

edit: found it under Extras........

Jim Rogers

[Jim_Rogers]

Does anyone have a good definition of "grade sawing"....?

I would like to add that to my personal list of definitions. I guess it could be also called "sawing for grade".

I can't find it in the FF dictionary.

Jim Rogers

[beenthere]

The term "flitch" used to be pretty specific to the hardwood veneer industry, but were sawn out of logs to be mounted on a veneer slicing machine. As time went on, a flitch meant thicker wood than a board, and with waney edges.
There were "half round" veneer machines that produced a veneer half way between round log peeling and straight slicing. If that makes any sense. ;)

[47sawdust]

Grade sawing-the objective of grade sawing is to maximize the amount of high quality,knot free lumber produced.It takes more time,but the lumber that's milled will be of a higher grade and higher value.First slab are removed to create a square cant,and then the cant is rotated frequently so that only one or two boards are removed from one side at a time.

I got this info from the Ontario Woodlot web site back in 2007.
Try www.ont-woodlot-assoc.org
Lots of good tips there.

[Jim_Rogers]

I'll check it out thanks

Jim Rogers

[beenthere]

maximize the amount of high quality,knot free lumber produced

I'd offer just a slight variation to that def'n to "maximize the grade and value of the lumber produced". And grade can mean many different measures of quality depending on the customer. If the customer is the hardwood market and boards are graded by standard rules (i.e. NHLA), then those rules should be followed when breaking down a log.

If the customer wants clear boards, his/her rules will be what the goal. The offall that doesn't make the rule will have to be dealt with, either in another market or firewood maybe.

This is just what comes to mind, and there are a lot more scenarios to consider. ;)

[drobertson]

My experience has been each log will produce all grades from the nhla, some faces will give more of the upper grade, what is done with the cant is the determining factor,  david

[Ianab]

My experience has been each log will produce all grades from the nhla, some faces will give more of the upper grade, what is done with the cant is the determining factor,  david

This is true, even the best logs will have the pith and the area around it full of various knots and defects, so those a low grade. What percentages of what grades is how log quality is estimated.

So "grade sawing" is simply about trying to recover the best value from the log, based on the value of each grade in your current market.  Basically you need to be able to stack up the boards from a log, measure and grade them, and put an actual value on the whole stack. The main consideration is how the boards grade, and their value (within reason). This is something an experienced sawyer does in their head all the time, and can make a HUGE difference to the profitability of the operation.  Saw the log right and you get 50% high grade $2 bd/ft product, and 50% $1 bd/ft product. Saw it wrong and it's 75% low grade and only 25% high grade?

Do the maths on a 100 bf/ft log, you might recover $150, or mess up and only make $125. That's the difference between making a profit, and slowly going broke.

This is an oversimplification, because you might be selling wood in 3 or 4 grades, all with different (and changing) values, but you get the idea. Minimise the low value, maximise the higher value.

How you treat the cant as you saw it is a big part, but it starts before that, with how the log is loaded. If you have some bad knots or defect visible then you would aim to put those at the corners of your cant. This gives you a relatively clear board, with defects on the edge that can be edged off. It may be practical to take that 12 x 1 board, trim the defect off, and it suddenly becomes a higher grade 10 x 1. In our $1 and $2 example, (assume it's 12 ft long) you can take a $12 board, and made it into a $20 board, by cutting some of it off.!!!  Likewise you may be able to "upgrade" a board by trimming defects off the end. Same deal, turn the low value 12ft board into a high value 10ft board.

So there are lots of "tricks" that can improve the recovery. You may end up with less actual volume, and it may take a bit more time (turning, edging and trimming), but the pile of boards at the end is the highest value that it was practical to recover from that log.

Now other sawing jobs may not be priced on the grade, then you go by the customers cut list. This is more likely in a portable sawing situation. If they want 6 x 2s, or 12 x 1s, that's what you try and maximise. How the actual boards grade isn't the issue, as long as they are "fit for purpose". You aren't being paid by the graded value of the individual board, so it doesn't matter.  You then try and maximise the recovery while minimising the time spent.

Or they ask for "grade sawn" and you give it your best effort, balancing the recovery and time spent.

Ian

[GeneWengert-WoodDoc]

Flitch sawing has two parts...first it is live sawing, also called sawing through and through.  Secondly, the individual, unedged, live sawn pieces are kept together in the same order that they came out of the log.  In most cases, the flitches are then banded together so that they will stay intact as a group from one log and will stay in the correct order.

Flitch sawing is best if the logs are carefully debarked, as flitches with bark on can be insect magnets.

[GeneWengert-WoodDoc]

Grade sawing, in addition to maximizing grade and therefore value, but usually not volume, is also called sawing around.  The log will be turned in most cases four or five times.  Sawing time is longer than live sawing or flitch sawing.

The third sawing technique is cant sawing, which is similar to grade sawing, except the center of the log is manufactured into a large timber, such as 4x4, 7x9, etc.  Such a timber is usually heart centered.  The cant may be sold as-is, or resawn into lumber.

Another phrase used is "sawing a double" and also "sawing a double double."  A double refers to sawing a piece twice as thick as desired (on the head rig) and then resawing this into two thinner pieces of the correct thickness on a resaw.  A double double would be a piece four times thicker that is resawn into four pieces of the required thickness.  The reason is that this speeds production on the head rig when there is a second machine, a resaw, that can make the thinner pieces.

If you want more terms, there is a great book TERMS OF THE TRADE published by Random Lengths in 1993 that has a fantastic listing.

[Jim_Rogers]

Thanks to everyone for all your posts and comments.

Jim Rogers